Graduation time was both a happy time and a sad time. Many of us "sailed" away to different schools, different locals, and many, many different experiences. And then there were those of us who stayed in the Huntsville area for our different schools and experiences. When you return to Huntsville, it is our hope that "...you'll find 'many of us' waiting here."

As you can see, we need other pictures of graduating classes from Rison School. So far, these are the only ones that we have. This page will not be complete without your class' picture.

Before Mrs. Louise Fain, a former teacher at Rison, died this year at the age of 93, one of our Association members stayed in touch with her. Mrs. Fain was very curious about "her" Rison students so she was told about various people - some she remembered (and some she didn't!). Later, she was sent a list of the known occupations of many of the Rison students and she was asked to try to match the occupation with a student's name. Well, if she finished the little test we don't know.

We thought that you might like to see this list of occupations and maybe even take the same little test given to Mrs. Fain. If we have overlooked some occupations, please let us know and we'll add them.

Here's a listing of the graduates at
Rison. The class sizes ranged from 3 (all female) in 1930, to 47 (23
of which were male) in 1943. Can you imagine why there were so few in
1930 and so many in 1943?

In some cases, all those named did not,
in fact, graduate as explained below.

If we think back as to what was
happening in the world during those years, we know that there was a
depression in 1930 and that WWII had started in December 1941.

In the case of the class of 1930, could
it be that the families needed their male children to work during the
depression?

As for the class of 1943, according to graduates Marguerite Lockmiller Parker and Bill Rice, all of those named in that class below did not graduate - some dropped out to go to work and others either joined the military or were probably drafted. Click here to see a picture of the graduating Class of 1943.

If there are other names that should be
on this list or there are errors, please email us at: risondallas@comcast.net.

Here is a photo of six of the eight members of the graduating Class of 1946 who sponsored the 34th annual reunion on August 5, 2006, in celebration of their 60th anniversaryLeft to right: John Williams, Glenn Hymer, Sally Certain Hymer, Helen Ruth Case , Marjorie Ruth Cullom Snell, Alline Frazier Allen

And this photo includes the other two members of the Class of 1946 at the August 5, 2006, reunionLeft to right: (Alline), Faye Pitman Hanvey, Clara Mae Jones Worley

This is a photograph of the graduating class of 1951.(This was the last class to graduate from Rison School. The Rison junior class of 1951 was in the first graduating class in 1952 at the new Butler High School.)Front row, left to right: Jerry Pridmore, Ann Schrimsher Franklin, Joyce Magness, Bud McGinnis, Fannie Mae Johnson Falkenberry,Peggy Worley, Connie Fisher, James Brewer
Back row, left to right:Mr. Cecil Fain (Principal), Lillian Jones, Muriel Case, Lois Allen Lewis, Thomas Blount, Opal Payne, Jerry Potter (uniform underneath graduation gown; home on leave from military), Faye Speck, Corrine Sharp, Bill King, Mrs. Velma Hanvey (Teacher/Class Sponsor).
Not shown in this picture is Charles Lloyd Chisam who was away in the Air Force in 1951, Dewitt Fairbanks who was in the Army in Korea, and Elton Adcock who was also away in the military. Although Jimmy Falkenberry was in the Air Force and was not available when this picture was made, he walked down the aisle in his uniform at the graduation exercises.